A journal of a thousand words begins with a single schlep - to our Writer's Corner!

It's a brand new year! The race is on to see who can stop writing 2012 on their rent checks first.

In the spirit of fresh starts, here's a small selection of the many many journals we sell:

Our pages await your delicious thoughts!

JOURNALS: combining the spiritual renewal of a gym membership/juice cleanse with the heady indulgence of eating ice cream sans pants. Resolutions are all well and good but now that the crazy gift-giving holidays are behind us, things get to be all about you again. Take a moment to let that sink in. What better way to take advantage of this intoxicating new-found freedom than by giving your brain somewhere to really take root? Trust me, you deserve it.

But maybe you lack the intestinal fortitude to be left all alone with your muse. Maybe the thought of blank white paper makes your palms sweat and your blood run cold. Maybe the symbolic stain of those first few inked thoughts is just a little too much to bear. I feel you, bro.

For the hesitant, here are a few unconventional journaling techniques to help you face down writer's block and blossom into that incandescent word-machine you burn to be:

- Write outside - or on the train, or at Starbucks on your lunch break. There's nothing sacred about a desk.

- Record your dreams - even the most vivid nocturnal phantasms fade from memory in the harsh light of day. Keep a pen and paper handy on the nightstand to assure that Fabio's marriage proposal stays fresh in your mind.

- Catalogue day-to-day inspiration - you know what we had before Pinterest? Paper.

- Keep a running tally of all who have wronged you - then, stew in your own resentment. Then burn the journal. Wait, don't do that, it's too pretty. Meditate on forgiveness (or vengeance, which might make for better reading).

- Bring your journal to a séance (AHEM) and let otherworldly spirits take possession of your motor abilities. This is a bona fide method for finding out where Great-Grandpa hid the family fortune. Or getting Abraham Lincoln's autograph.

- Make a yearbook - not just for high school anymore! Collect inscriptions from all your friends and co-workers. I recommend a multi-pack of neon gel pens to really amp up the nostalgia.

- Live-tweet your journaling experience:
        "Day 1. Wow I can't wait to unleash my inner Samuel Pepys!"
        "Day 2. Have unleashed inner James Frey. @booksmithtweets I blame you for this"
        "Day 3. S'all good - unleashing inner Joan Didion. My words are brutal beauty. Owe it all to Booksmith."